In the event Verizon Communications Inc. no longer requires the services of Karen Dykstra after it buys AOL Inc., the current AOL finance chief stands to walk away with a golden parachute -- to the tune of more than $6.5 million.

Ann Inc. is the second company to fail an advisory vote on its merger-related golden parachute payments to top executives this year, according to governance advisor Institutional Shareholder Services Inc.

U. S. regulators are yet again set to block a takeover of a European technology company by a Chinese buyer, computer-security-software maker Symantec spends $2.3 billion on LifeLock, a seller of identity-theft protection services, and the Chinese yuan continues to weaken against the U.S. dollar.

Staples has adopted a policy that limits so-called golden parachutes and requires shareholder approval to exceed a severance benefits cap for senior executives, a stockholder proposal that won majority backing.

Hedge funds can only hold sway over companies and their finance chiefs to the extent they deliver top-shelf performance. Since many high-profile names currently aren’t doing that, disenchanted investors increasingly shun what was once the hottest place to put money.

John Boehner may have retired from Capitol Hill, but he is living on a bit longer in the airwaves of the 2016 presidential campaign. The former House speaker is the villain of a new radio ad by a super PAC supporting Ted Cruz for president.

The question isn’t whether Republicans running for president support or oppose the budget deal between the White House and GOP congressional leaders. The question is the extent of vitriol in their language condemning the agreement.

As Towers Watson & Co. was negotiating a merger earlier this year that would later cause its stock to fall, Chief Executive John Haley netted nearly $10 million from selling the consulting company’s shares.